old friend

I was driving my car early this morning listening to the radio when the dj starting talking about Hurricane Katrina. How could I forget....it right around this exact time 6 years ago when my mom and I were huddled in our newly purchased home (we had moved in a mere 3 weeks before) only a half mile from the beach here in Gulfport, Mississippi wondering if we had made a mistake by staying. I can still remember the noise of the wind and rain whipping around our house.  At first, I was mesmerized by the storm's fury; I had set up a chair at a small, uncovered window at the front of the house and watched as unidentified pieces of debris swirled around in the street. I will never forget the terrifying moment when I hear a loud crack, thud then the whole house shook and a large limb from our magnolia tree crashed into our front yard. The fascination quickly turned to fear.

Just a few blocks south of our house, we discovered homes that had been here for hundreds of years were reduced to slabs of concrete.  Front porch steps led to phantom houses and left us with an eerie reminder of nature's wrath.  In those following days, we endured soaring temperatures without electricity or running water.  And for those who have never been anywhere in the South in late August without air conditioner...imagine Hell...only hotter.

And we had no idea how bad it really was everywhere else, too.  We could only pick up a few radio stations and everyone was talking about flooding in New Orleans.  I remember when my family lived there years ago people were concerned about the levees, but, surely, they hadn't failed during the storm, right??

We all know the horrifying stories that came out of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast area in the days and weeks following the storm.  And we could all probably go on and on about the lack of response and beyond poor job of handling the situation.  But for me, that is not what defined us.  It was the the fact that everyone got together and said, "Okay...that was terrible.  But it's time to pick ourselves up, clean up and get back to life."  And that's what happened.  Of course there are still reminders of that day and, yes, it will take many more years to get back to the way things were.  But if you ask me, I think it's ok if things aren't ever "normal" again.  For me, it serves as a reminder that we are a lot stronger than people think and it's gonna take a lot more than a storm to tear us down.

All these thoughts about Hurricane Katrina got me thinking about my impending move (just a few days away, y'all...can you believe it?!?) and my reasoning behind it.  Now, when it comes to me moving to New Orleans every once in a while I get someone who looks at me funny, cocks their head to the side and says, "New Orleans? Now, why the hell would you wanna live there??"  Usually I give the easy answer like, "Oh, well, I really want to get back into my photography."  But it's a little more complicated than that.  Of course my main goal is to further enhance my skills a photographer and I picked New Orleans because a) it's where I was born, b) it's like the Mecca of the South for art and artists, c) there is so much life and culture and music, and finally d) I want to be apart of this New Orleans resurgence.

This last one is most important to me.  Its pretty obvious that in the past two or three years New Orleans has really come back to life.  More and more people are taking this city seriously when it comes to music, arts and its overall culturally iconic significance.  From the Saints winning the Super Bowl (who thought that would EVER happen?!?) to filmmakers choosing New Orleans as their backdrop, it feels like the golden days could be back.  You can tell that something big is happening here and as for me, I cannot wait to be apart of it.

the big build up...

Well, well, well....here it is.  My first blog post EVER.  Ekk!! This is kinda exciting!  Okay, all cheesiness aside, let's get to the important stuff:

So, I've been sitting here for maybe 45 minutes trying to think of some creative ways to start this off.  Should I start with my childhood? Naaah, no one cares about that. I mean, nowadays, almost everybody can say their parents got divorced when you were 4 years old, forcing you to move to an unknown place away from friends and familiar sights.  Okay then...how about after college? Ugggh, yet again no one cares about how you had to move back home because you had no idea what to do with that pretty little piece of paper. Every post-grad knows all about that, right? (RIGHT?!?) Alright. Different approach. Let's not talk about me; (if you decide to ever read this blog again after this first hideous post, you'll have plenty of time to get to know me) let's talk about Her.

She is unique to say the least. She plays by her own rules and definitely dances to the beat of her own drum (and trumpet and saxophone and guitar). She is spicy in more ways than you think. She sure as hell doesn't give a damn what anybody else thinks; but people who know her think she's pretty amazing. She is inspiring. Countless artists have chosen her as their sole muse. She is strong. Stronger than any man and even some of nature's most formidable forces. She can show an entire nation that no matter how many people doubt her, a disaster (or two) won't kill her spirit.

If you haven't guessed it...She is New Orleans.

So why chose to personify New Orleans as a super sassy Southern lady who could probably out-drink your entire Bourbon Street bound Bachelor party? Because, well, why the hell not? (Keep up, darling) It's that easygoing, walk a little slower, enjoy the music YET with that rough around the edges attitude that I love about this city. She reminds me a little of myself...or at least what I aspire to be : )

For this reason and many many more, I decided to regain my birthright: to once again become a New Orleans resident.  The last time I lived there I was maybe barely 4 years old, my parents had just split up and I thought I would never see this place again.  We were only moving an hour away to Gulfport, MS but to a 4 year old it might as well've been the Pacific.

Since then, my life has taken me to some different places: college which led to study aboard which led to England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Spain and France which led to college loan debt which then led to moving back in with the parentals.  But through all these ups and downs (and especially the stagnant periods) New Orleans was always stuck in the back of my mind.  Why couldn't I shake it? I had considered moving to other "hip" places like Memphis, Austin, New York City and even Hawaii. But nope...She wouldn't let me forget her.

So it was around this time last year when I made the decision. And here I am; just TWO WEEKS from moving to the Big Easy. Got my apartment waiting, a whole lotta lists made and more determination than I've ever had before. More than anything I want people to see my photography. Thats right, I'm a photographer (did I really forget to mention that earlier??) I've been fascinated with it since I was little and in college I received my B.A. in photojournalism. For the last year, however, I haven't been producing a lot of images. But that's all gonna change in New Orleans. I am going to push myself to make some of the best photos I've ever made. I have no excuses (wellllll, except maybe a major equipment overhaul but we'll fix that....fingers crossed!)

Whatever happens, it is sure to be a BIG adventure.

Can't wait  : )